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[Nymphae]

A buddy at work just told me about a movie he watched last night called Soul Man. A comedy about "a white man who temporarily darkens his skin in order to pretend to be black and qualify for a black-only scholarship at Harvard Law School." Dude is in black face for the entire movie.

Some quotes from Wikipedia:

NAACP Chapter President Willis Edwards said in a statement at the time, "We certainly believe it is possible to use humor to reveal the ridiculousness of racism. However the unhumorous and quite seriously made plot point of Soul Man is that no black student could be found in all of Los Angeles who was academically qualified for a scholarship geared to blacks."

"In the final analysis, it is our opinion that the American moviegoer is really unlikely to waste good time and money on going to see this questionable effort at film making," the statement concluded.

The NAACP didn't seem to even have a problem with black face in 1986, more the insulting insinuation about academic performance. And they didn't seem to get too rustled over it, stating "basically we think the American public won't watch this trash." Today this would turn into a headhunt for anyone involved with the film, Careers would be over. There was a UCLA protest of around 200 people on opening night, but it doesn't seem to have become a national scandal. I have never even heard of this movie before.

"A white man donning blackface is taboo," said C Thomas Howell. "Conversation over — you can't win. But our intentions were pure: We wanted to make a funny movie that had a message about racism."

Howell later expanded:

I’m shocked at how truly harmless that movie is, and how the anti-racial message involved in it is so prevalent... This isn’t a movie about blackface. This isn’t a movie that should be considered irresponsible on any level... It’s very funny... It made me much more aware of the issues we face on a day-to-day basis, and it made me much more sensitive to racism... It’s an innocent movie, it’s got innocent messages, and it’s got some very, very deep messages. And I think the people that haven’t seen it that judge it are horribly wrong. I think that’s more offensive than anything. Judging something you haven’t seen is the worst thing you can really do. In fact, Soul Man sort of represents that all the way through. I think it’s a really innocent movie with a very powerful message, and it’s an important part of my life. I’m proud of the performance, and I’m proud of the people that were in it. A lot of people ask me today, “Could that movie be made today?"... Robert Downey Jr. just did it in Tropic Thunder!... The difference is that he was just playing a character in Tropic Thunder, and there was no magnifying glass on racism, which is so prevalent in our country. I guess that’s what makes people more uncomfortable about Soul Man. But I think it’s an important movie.​

I don't quite understand how RDJ gets away with it in Tropic Thunder, maybe that movie came out before the PC police had kicked everything into overdrive.

 

[Uhtred]

I've seen it. Im old enough to remember seeing it in the theater with my mom back in the day. And then again on VHS.

 

[Soltype]

I liked it, never understood what all the fuss was about.

 

[Scopa]

Yeah, used to rent it from the video store when I was a kid. Haven’t seen it in years though. I’m guessing it’s not available on any current service.

 

[brap]

Yeah, used to rent it from the video store when I was a kid. Haven’t seen it in years though. I’m guessing it’s not available on any current service.

Just amazon, youtube, google play, vudu and itunes.

 

[#Phonepunk#]

I don't quite understand how RDJ gets away with it in Tropic Thunder, maybe that movie came out before the PC police had kicked everything into overdrive.

feel like it only just did. personally i was perplexed at why it was ok in that movie. i guess the joke is that it's saying black face is wrong but it's like, is this a point that needed to be made in a 2008 mainstream movie?

people found the movie way more funny/satirical than i did. i thought it was lazy.

 

[highrider]

Remember it well, it was ok. I grew up in the 70s and 80s and the level of racial tension was nonexistent compared to what it is today.

 

[Scopa]

Just amazon, youtube, google play, vudu and itunes.

Really? I’m amazed it hasn’t been blacklisted because of the current political climate.

 

[cryptoadam]

I think I saw it. Is there some scene or something about a Hollywood FX artist doing his make up or something? Its a hazy memory but somewhat familar.

 

[Nymphae]

people found the movie way more funny/satirical than i did. i thought it was lazy.

Yeah it wasn't great I don't think, but I did get a few good laughs out of it. The Tom Cruise bit was amazing.

 

[drmohansingh]

No, I haven't.

 

[DiscoJer]

There was an episode of Different strokes where the white sister dresses up as black because she thinks her new boyfriend is racist. That probably wouldn't fly today, either.

 

[DeafTourette]

A buddy at work just told me about a movie he watched last night called Soul Man. A comedy about "a white man who temporarily darkens his skin in order to pretend to be black and qualify for a black-only scholarship at Harvard Law School." Dude is in black face for the entire movie.

Some quotes from Wikipedia:





The NAACP didn't seem to even have a problem with black face in 1986, more the insulting insinuation about academic performance. And they didn't seem to get too rustled over it, stating "basically we think the American public won't watch this trash." Today this would turn into a headhunt for anyone involved with the film, Careers would be over. There was a UCLA protest of around 200 people on opening night, but it doesn't seem to have become a national scandal. I have never even heard of this movie before.



I don't quite understand how RDJ gets away with it in Tropic Thunder, maybe that movie came out before the PC police had kicked everything into overdrive.

RDJ got away with it because he wasn't making fun of black people in his portrayal. He was playing a confused white man who didn't believe in himself and thought playing a black man (albeit one that was a stereotype of 70s and 80s action stars ... Yes there were some) would help him find his way.

The C. Thomas Howell movie... That was more making fun of the stuff black folks go through... A quick laugh at black people without SAYING it's a dig at black people... This is from memory of that movie so I may be mixing it with something else.

 

[#Phonepunk#]

I did see Watermelon Man which is a pretty good movie w social commentary but it came out a decade before this

 

[bitbydeath]

Really? I’m amazed it hasn’t been blacklisted because of the current political climate.

Well you can’t use the term blacklisted as it too is clearly a racist term so nothing can be blacklisted anymore, whitelisting is fine though.

 

[The Bloody-Nine]

I remember laughing my balls off at the basketball scene.

 

[JCK75]

If you cast a female in the role and went native American instead of black you have Elizabeth Warren's autobiography.